By Stuart Hirsch
The Herald Bulletin
ANDERSON, Ind. — Dashing through flames without protective gear, Anderson EMT Adam Hinkle and Fire Chief David Cravens rescued a 78-year-old Anderson woman when her house caught fire Thursday night.
Medic 3, the unit Hinkle serves on, and Cravens were just blocks away from Linda Goen’s house in the 2500 block of South Madison Avenue when the fire call came about 6:30 p.m.
When they arrived to see flames showing on the porch and inside the house, Cravens said, Goen was leaning halfway out a window yelling for help.
A neighbor was trying to help, but the woman was going to get cut on the broken window, Hinkle said.
“Me and Chief Cravens ran in and carried the woman out,” he said. “You could barely see inside through the smoke.”
Goen had elevated levels of carbon monoxide from breathing in smoke but it was not thought to be serious. Firefighters also were able to rescue the woman’s cat and dog from the fire.
Battalion Chief Kent Helpling said department fire investigators are looking into how the blaze started. He estimated the house sustained $15,000 in damage.
In a story published Thursday, Cravens said the department has fought 10 to 15 fires in the last few weeks, and said part of the reason is Anderson has an older housing stock with a lot of homes that don’t have the best electrical wiring.
After the fire at Goen’s house was extinguished, Cravens continued on to the City Building to attend a meeting of the Anderson City Council.
Copyright 2017 The Herald Bulletin